


Not what we expected

by eenpointe



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-27
Updated: 2014-11-27
Packaged: 2018-02-27 04:41:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2679506
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eenpointe/pseuds/eenpointe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jennifer needs a date for her sister's wedding...and Derek lost his bet.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Not what we expected

**Author's Note:**

> An AU prompt I found on tumblr  
> 'I hired you off craigslist to be my date for a wedding' AU  
> This is the first fic I've ever written and posted so constructive criticism is welcome.  
> Also, the formatting may be a little off in a few places  
> unedited

 

  
   Jennifer still couldn't believe she had done it. She couldn't believe she had put up an ad on craigslist looking for a date. But she had and now she was sitting in a busy coffee shop waiting to meet the guy who had accepted.  
   She checks her watch for the third time in the last ten minutes. He should've been here by now and she was getting anxious. She looks up just in time to see a tall, well-built man with scruffy facial hair and killer cheekbones approach her table.  
  
    He glances quickly at his phone before he shoves it into his pocket and takes the last couple steps over to the table.   
  
   "Uh, are you Jennifer? The one who’s looking for a date?"   
   
   She winces at the wording, but quickly sets down her coffee and stands up to greet him.  
  
   "Hi, yes I'm Jennifer, you must be Derek. Thanks for meeting me here."  
  
   “Yeah, no problem, um I'm just going to grab a coffee and be right back."  
  
   Jennifer nods her head and sits back down as he goes to order his coffee. This was turning out better then she had hoped for. Not only was the guy who accepted, real and not a joke, but he was also hot like fire, and seemed okay. Now she just had to learn a little about him and make sure he wasn't a serial killer.  
  
   When he returns to the table they chat for a little, getting to know each other. When Jennifer gets home she'll get her friend to search his police record so she knows she's not going out with criminal, but for now he seems like a nice guy.  
  
   "Alright so the date is for a wedding. My step-sister's wedding. It's a few hours away and she's having all her guests chauffeured there. It's going to be really big and really fancy. Do you have something to wear to a wedding? "  
  
   "Yeah, I have something to wear, but why do you need a date for your sister’s wedding?  Is there some sibling rivalry or something?"  
   
   "More like she's been trying to one-up me my whole life and keeps telling I'm going to be alone until I die, because I have no appeal."  
  
   "Oh. So I take it the two of you don't really get along very well?   
  
   "Um, we kind of hate each other with a burning passion, while we pretend that we love each other, so, um, yeah. I'm pretty sure she only invited me to rub it in my face that she's getting married and I’m not”

   “So you don’t want to go to the wedding without a date because you know she’ll give you a hard time about it”

   It wasn’t a question, it was a statement and all Jennifer could do was nod. He was spot on. Now that he knew why she needed a date, she wanted to know why he had accepted. Based off the leather jacket, the designer sunglasses and the fact that his coffee was one of the most expensive things on the menu, she was guessing it wasn’t for money.

   “So, um out of curiosity, why’d you agree to go on a date with a stranger?”

   He shifts in his seat and grits his teeth.

   “I lost a bet with a friend and the deal was that whoever won got to pick something off craigslist for the loser. My friend decided that a date was the perfect choice.”

   “Oh! Of all things I wasn’t expecting that.”

   “You sound relieved. What where you expecting then?

   “Well, it’s not that I _was_ expecting something, it’s just for all I know you could be a sex demanding freak, or a serial killer”

   Derek snorts and it almost sounds like a laugh.  

   “No, trust me I’m not looking for sex and I’m not a serial killer, although I’ve been told I look like one”

   “Well that’s good to hear. I mean it’s not good that people think you look like a serial killer but it’s good that you aren’t one? Oh, I should stop talking now….. Um so how about I give you my number and I’ll call later to discuss details, sound good?” 

   “Yeah sure,” Derek fishes his phone out of his pocket, unlocks it and hands it to Jennifer.

   Jennifer fumbles with the phone (she’s always been a little clumsy, something her sister taunted her with) and quickly puts in her number.

   “Well, I’ll talk with you later, Derek.” Jennifer stands, collecting her things and gives Derek a smile and a little nod of her head. “Bye”

   “Bye Jennifer, talk to you later” He gives her a smile and she’s almost blinded by how white his teeth are. He returns the nod and holds the door open for her on the way out of the shop.

 

   Later that day Jennifer’s phone pings, informing her she has a new text. She unlocks her phone and opens the message.

 **From unknown number:** _hey Jennifer, this is Derek_

   She quickly saves his number and texts him back

 **To Derek:** _saved Ur number, but I can’t talk right now, I’m at work. I’ll call u in the next hour_

 **From Derek:**   _kay_

   27 minutes later Jennifer has just got home and is toeing off her shoes and getting a quick drink before she flops onto her bed and pulls out her phone. She checks her texts from her friends who searched Derek’s police record (she works at the station, and likes to keep her friends safe) and finds that there is nothing alarming about Derek that she should be scared of.  Then she flips through her contacts until she finds Derek and hits the call button. On the second ring he answers.

   “Hey Derek, its Jennifer”

   “Hey”

   “Okay so just going over details, if you’re still in?

   “Yeah I’m still in”

   “Great, so the wedding itself is next Sunday but everyone is being picked up and taken to the resort, Saturday evening. There will be dinner and drinks then whatever you want for the rest of the day. Sunday there is breakfast at 9:00 then we have the rest of the day to ourselves until 1:30 which is when we have to gather for the ceremony, which starts at 2:00. After the ceremony there will be dancing and other crap like that, followed by pictures and dinner. After dinner there will be gift opening then we can do whatever we want. There will be cars ready to take us home after breakfast on Monday which is at 9:00. Got it?

   “Um, yeah, quick question, how far away is the wedding and what time are we being taken over there?”

   Derek can hear rustling of paper and someone fumbling around for a moment before Jennifer speaks up again.

   “Uh, the wedding is about two hours away and we are being picked up at 4:00. That way we have time to settle before dinner. I guess you’ll need to be over at my house when they pick me up…I guess I can pick you up and bring you over or you can drive over. I’ll text you my address later”

   “Yeah, that’s fine.”

   They talk for a while longer about the wedding, discussing little details, they talk about themselves, just basic things like were they grew up, and they talk about Jennifer’s sister.  Jennifer tells Derek some stories about her so he understands why she doesn’t want to go to the wedding alone. They also decide that it would be best if they pretend that they’ve been together for a few months.

   Jennifer and Derek talk a couple times throughout the week: going through details for the wedding and telling each other about themselves. They learn a little about each other’s lives, enough so they’ll actually seem like a couple, and they find they actually quite like the other although neither one admits it.

   Friday night rolls around and as Jennifer packs her things her phone rings with a call from Derek. She quickly grabs the phone and answers it. 

 

   “Hey Derek”

   “Hey Jennifer, how are you?”

   “I’m good, just packing right now. What about you?”

   “I’m good, just wondering when I should be at your house tomorrow.”

   “Um, well we’re being picked up at 4:00 for come over a little before that, I guess.”

   “Alright, well I need to pack, so I’ll see you tomorrow, bye”

   “Bye”

   Jennifer chucks her phone on her desk, flops onto her bed and stares at the ceiling. She really doesn’t want to deal with Maggie tomorrow. She was like one of the evil sisters from Cinderella and Jennifer wished she was as real as them. Why did her Mom have to marry someone with such a horrid child?

   It’s almost 4:00 now and Jennifer is rushing around her house getting her last few things together, grabbing a quick snack, and throwing on some make-up. She checks herself in the mirror. Maggie will surely have something to say about Jennifer’s outfit, she’ll say that the jeans need to be tighter, the V-neck needs to be deeper, and the combat boots need to have heels. Jennifer hopes Maggie with be too distracted by Derek’s good looks to critique her. Speaking of Derek there’s the door bell ringing.  She runs down the hallway and pulls the door open to let him in.

   “Hey, I’m almost ready and the driver will probably be here soon, just give me a minute to grab my stuff”

   Jennifer is off down the hallway before Derek can respond and he finds himself just smiling after her. He hears her bumping around in her room before there is a quite thud followed by a string of swears.

   “Um Jennifer do you need a hand?”

    He hears another bump before she calls out to him

   “That would be great right now”

   He follows the sound of her voice down the hallway and into a room brightly lit by the sunlight pouring in through the tall windows. There is a desk in the corner of the room piled high with papers, folders, and red pens. There is also a large vanity in the room along with a dresser but his eyes are drawn to the queen bed in the center of the room. The duvet has warm shades of pink, peach, and brown and is stacked with pillows. He isn’t tired but he would love to lie down and not get up for hours.  

 

   However he hurries over to Jennifer and grabs the heavy suitcase that she was struggling with. He sees her grab a smaller bag and she doges past him down the hall waving for him to follow her.

   Just as they have set down Jennifer’s things a limo pulls up outside the house and they both stare for a second, before Jennifer speaks.

   “Is she serious?  She got a freaking limo? She must want to show me up more than I thought”

   The ride to the resort isn’t too bad, Jennifer and Derek chat for a while and she gives him warnings about Maggie and Maggie’s fiancé, Greg.  They are both stuck up and like to act all proper while at same time pretending that they are above everyone else. They are horrible by themselves and when you put them together you have something terrifying.

    When they get to the resort Maggie and Greg are outside greeting guests as they arrive. When the driver pulls up to the drop-off he tells them that their bags will be sent to their room and he passes them two key cards and tells them to enjoy their stay.

   When they step out of the car they are immediately greeted by a shrill fake-happy voice.

   “Jennifer!  Oh, you actually came! Goodness it is so good to see you!”  

   Maggie comes rushing over dragging Greg behind her. She grabs Jennifer’s shoulders and holds her at arm’s length. She gives Jennifer a quick once over and pulls her into a tight hug. Before Jennifer can say anything or hug her back she is pulling away and looking Derek up and down.  She bumps Jennifer’s hip with her own and gives her a pointed look.

   “Jennifer, introduce your cute little friend, who is he? Another teacher from the school, one of your students’ parents, someone on the school board?”

   Derek cleared his throat and stared Maggie right in the eye.

   “I’m Derek, her boyfriend”

   Maggie jerks back and stares at him. She looks back and forth between him and Jennifer and lets out a quite breath.

   “You’re kidding right? Jennifer doesn’t get boy-“

   Greg interrupts his fiancé, because he thinks he can see where this is going and wants it to happen in front of more people.

   “Jennifer and Derek, why don’t you head inside now, your things will be sent up to your room and you can get ready for dinner. It’s lovely to have you here.” He gives them an fake apologetic smile and ushers them inside

   They head up to the room matching the number on the key card. It’s a nice room and all but there is one problem. It’s a couple’s suite, and it only has one bed. Jennifer takes one look at the room and immediately pipes up.

   “I’ll take the couch, it’s not a problem”

   “Seriously, that couch looks like it could break your back if you laid on it too long. I’ll sleep on one side of the bed you sleep on the other. It’s a king size anyway.”

   Jennifer is a little taken aback by how comfortable he seems with this, but he’s right and the couch dose looks awful, plus she doesn’t think that being unrested will be a good idea for the wedding. She’s pretty sure it’s going to take all her energy to put up with Maggie. 

 

   Before they head down for dinner Jennifer redoes her make-up and changes into a slightly low-cut, fitted, red dress and black platforms.   When she steps out of the bathroom she catches Derek staring.  He clears his throat and quickly looks away.

   “Sorry, Jennifer, you look very nice”

   He is wearing a fitted button up with the sleeves rolled and she doesn’t know if his pants are too tight or if he just looks that good all the time. She scolds herself for thinking about it and accepts his complement.

   “Thank you, you look nice yourself.” She checks her watch and sees it’s almost time for dinner. “Shall we go then?”

 

    Dinner is going fine and is almost over when Maggie starts talking about when she and Jennifer were kids. Jennifer is only slightly annoyed by this until Maggie brings up high school. High school wasn’t exactly the highlight of Jennifer’s life, she was always considered second best to her sister who was the pretty sister, the nice sister, and the smart sister while Jennifer was the troubled, frustrating one. 

    The problem is that Maggie loves telling everyone how much better she is then Jennifer and that doesn’t change at all when she’s slightly drunk.

   “So then Miss Samuels is putting together her favorite students, and she says, “Miss Blake! I want you in this group” so of course Jennifer gets all excited thinking that Miss Samuels is talking to her so she gets up and starts walking over there, and Miss Samuels just goes “No, not you sweetie,  I want the smart Miss Blake!” It was hilarious! Jennifer was so…she was so…naïve, thinking that someone actually picked her when they had me. I mean c’mon, get it through your head, no one likes you! Ah, such good times”

    That was quite enough for Jennifer. She wasn’t going to cause a scene because that would just annoy her parents, who would say that Maggie was being harmless and she was just trying to steal the attention away from her sister like always.

   She gently pushes away from the table, saying she’s getting tired and is going to head up to her room. She gives them a tight smile and thanks them for dinner. She pushes her chair back in and quickly walks away before any of them can try to stop her.

   The tears start on the stairs and by the time she’s in her room she’s sobbing. She knew she shouldn’t have come to this wedding; it was a bad idea all around. Her entire family thinks she is second best, even though she is the one with a job and her own house while Maggie just lives off of Greg’s money. She’s second because she’s not the pretty one, because she’s not the older one, because she’s wasting her time being a teacher. And they wonder why she doesn’t go to family reunions.

 

   She collapses on to the bed and buries her face in the pillows. She was right, the only reason Maggie invited her was so she could embarrass Jennifer in front of everyone, knowing that Greg and their parents wouldn’t say anything. Jennifer is about to go change out of her dress and start grading papers to distract herself, when she feels the bed dip next to her. She sits up and sees Derek looming over her, his eyebrows drawn together in a look of unease.

   “Hey are you okay?”

   His voice is filled with concern as her gently brushes her hair out of her face and cups her face in his hands.

   “Not really, I knew I shouldn’t have come. I knew she’d do this, but I guess for once I just didn’t want to be the sad, morbid, hermit that they all see me as. I just wanted to be as good as her, and now look at me, I’m whining to someone I don’t know very well, who probably doesn’t want to hear it.”

   “Hey no, no I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t want to hear it”

   He gives her shoulders a tight squeeze before sliding his arms around her and pulling her against his side, stroking her hair gently.

   “Do you want to talk about it Jennifer? I know what it’s like; I have a family that’s pretty hard on me because I’m the only boy. I know the feeling when everyone expects the best out of you but always assumes the worst.”

   Jennifer leans further into him, burying her face in his shoulder and wrapping her arms around him. She wonders why she feels so comfortable talking to and being held by a guy she barely knows. She doesn’t know why, but she feels like she can trust him, feels like she could confide in him and he wouldn’t tell anyone, and she doesn’t know why, but sitting there in Derek’s arms she feels safe.

 

   She doesn’t really remember lying down or taking off her shoes but when she wakes up the next morning she is being spooned by Derek, her dress is unzipped slightly for comfort, her hair is combed and her shoes are on the floor next to the bed. When she shifts her weight to turn over and face Derek, she sees that he is awake and blinking sleepily. They just lay there in silence watching each other, studying one another’s faces and memorizing every little detail. Jennifer is about to close her eyes and fall back asleep when she sees Derek move. He lifts his hand up and cups her cheek with it.

   “You’re beautiful you know that right?”

   His voice is scratchy and rough from sleeping, but it’s also soft and soothing in a way Jennifer didn’t know was possible.

   “I’ve never really thought so, but thank you”

   “Must be because you’ve never been around the right people”

   Her cheeks flush slightly at the thought of someone as good looking as Derek telling her she’s pretty. Usually the only times people say things like that to her, is when she gets an immature student who thinks it’s cool to hit on your teacher.

   It’s a shame she had to meet Derek under these conditions. He seems sweet and caring and she would love to have someone like that in her life, whether it was as a friend or as a boyfriend, she didn’t care.

   “Are you saying that you’re one of the “right” people then?”

   Derek raises his eyebrow ever so slightly at her question before he answers.

   “I don’t know if I am, but I know I wouldn’t mind it if I was”

    His hand moves from her cheek to the back of her neck and he pulls her closer, pressing their lips together. The kiss is slow and soft, and his hand is loose on her neck, loose enough that if she wanted to pull away she could. Not that she does.

   After a moment he pulls back and lays his head back on the pillows, his hand returning to her cheek and caressing her face.

   Jennifer is the first one to break the silence that hangs over the room.

   “Well, you know, if you want to be one of the “right” people, I’m certainly not going to stop you”

   She moves toward him closing the gap between them, about to go for kiss number two when they hear knocking on the door and a shrill voice seeps thought the walls.

   “Jennifer, it’s your mother, I don’t know what you’re doing in there but you’d better not be having sexual exchanges with that boyfriend of yours while we all wait for you at breakfast. You’d better be downstairs in five minutes, or so help me I’m breaking down this door and dragging you there myself.

   Jennifer snorts softly and rolls her eyes at her mother’s word choices before grinning up at Derek.

   She lays a hand on his chest and uses the leverage to push herself up. She leans over him and whispers “sexual exchanges” in his ear. He feels her hot breath ghost over the side of his face and he can’t stop the snort of laughter that he lets out.  

   “Was that a laugh Derek? Why are you laughing? Are you ticklish or something? You know what, I bet you are, but there’s only one way for me to find out!”

   “What? No, Jennifer I assure you I’m not-“

   She slides her hand down his chest until it’s resting over his stomach, looks up at him for a split second before her fingers are moving so fast that they’re blurry. They’re both laughing so loudly that neither one of them hears the rapping on the door.

   “Jennifer Maddison Blake, I don’t know what you find so funny, but you’re going to ruining your sister’s big day if you don’t get to breakfast now! I’m leaving now, and you’d better not make me come back up here!”

   They listen to Mrs. Blake’s footsteps until they can’t hear them anymore, then they hastily get out of bed and get changed. Jennifer wipes off the make up under her eyes and gives her hair a quick brush before her and Derek hurry downstairs. Breakfast goes off without a hitch but Jennifer has a hard time keeping a straight face throughout the meal, because Greg and Maggie are sitting next to each other at the table with a freaking curtain hanging between them, so they can’t see each other until the ceremony. Jennifer thinks it’s ridiculous.

 

   After breakfast everyone leaves to go get ready for the wedding and Jennifer and Derek head back to their room. They shower and get dressed, Jennifer wearing a pale pink off the shoulder dress and Derek wearing an outfit similar to last night’s. He watches her as she does her hair and makeup and puts on jewelry. When she turns to face him, he again, tells her she is beautiful and she just shakes her head a little and smiles.

   The two of them sit and talk until it’s almost 1:30, then they head downstairs. When they get to the courtyard where the wedding is being held one of Jennifer’s Aunts stops them and asks if they need any tissues for the ceremony.  Jennifer lets out a small laugh and shakes her head.

   “Thanks Aunt Patty, but I don’t cry at the weddings of people I like, so I defiantly won’t be crying at this one.”

   Jennifer gives her Aunt a quick kiss on the cheek and pulls Derek passed her to their seats. When she sits down next to him she notices his eyebrows are raised slightly and the corners of his mouth are turned upward in a barely noticeable smile.

   “What are you smiling about?

    Her voice is sharper then she means for it to be, but Derek’s smile just grows and he shakes his head.

   “Nothing, I just think the setup is nice, they picked some good decorations.”

    He gestures toward some of the flowers, as if to prove his point.

   “Hey Jennifer the ceremony starts at 2:00 right?”

   “Yeah, why do you ask?”

   “It, um, looks like we’re going to have a visitor in a minute.”

   Derek inclines his head to the side and Jennifer sees her most annoying, intrusive, nosy, Uncle making a beeline toward them, with a huge grin on his face.

   “Why does this have to happen to me? Out of all of the relatives here why does it have to be him?”

   “I take it you don’t like him very much”

   “Ugh, no, he’s the most annoying Uncle ever. He loves to ask all sorts of questions, including the ones he really shouldn’t ask and he has absolutely no filter or shame. It’s really awful.”

   “So are you saying that he’s going to come over here and ask us a bunch of awkward questions?” 

   “Yep, that’s exactly what I’m say-, hey Uncle Josh!”

   Jennifer stands up as her Uncle reaches them and gives him a quick hug.

   “Hey Jenny it’s good to see you again, it’s been a long time you know! Are you doing well? How’s works been? Are the students behaving? Who’s this with you? Is he a new boyfriend?”

   Jennifer glances over at Derek with an I-told-you-so look on her face, before turning to her Uncle.

   “I’m doing quite well, thank you, work has been good, the students never have and never will behave, and this is my boyfriend Derek.”

   “Ah, and I’m guessing the two of you are getting busy at night? Or do you prefer in the day? You know, I bet the two of you would make beautiful babies. Are you going to have babies together?”

   They are saved the embarrassment of answering those questions by someone yelling for everyone to take their seats because the ceremony will be starting soon. After everyone sits down, Greg walks across the courtyard and takes his place by the altar next to his groomsmen. Music starts playing and flower girl comes down the aisle, followed by the bridesmaids and the maid of honor. The music picks up as Maggie finally steps out and Jennifer has to (grudgingly) admit that she looks beautiful.

   Her dress is floor length, pure white, scoop neck, ball gown styled with a long train and a lace veil.   Her hair is arranged in a pile of dark brown curls on her head, and her makeup is neutral and simple with the exception of the red lip stick. She is wearing a peal necklace passed down to her from a grandmother and she is wearing pale blue stud earrings.

   She reaches Greg, they say their vows and their ‘I dos’ and they are pronounced husband and wife. Everyone stands up and claps and Jennifer decides that she won’t throw the uncooked rice directly into her sister’s face.

   Everyone moves further into the courtyard to the enormous white tents set up for dancing and eating. Inside the tents there are buffet tables set up along the sides with smaller tables for eating at and in the middle there is a large area for dancing. For decorations there are paper lanterns hanging from the ceiling and Christmas lights twisted together with green vines and white flowers. There are also white rose petals sprinkled on the floor and candles burning on the all tables.

   Maggie and Greg have started the dancing and the guests are gradually joining in. Derek turns toward Jennifer with a smirk and offers his hand to her.

   “Would you like to dance?”

   Jennifer takes his hand and he leads her to the dance floor just as a slow song starts playing.

   She wraps her arms around his neck and rests her head on his shoulder while he places his hands on her waist. They slowly move in time with the music and Jennifer starts humming along to the song making Derek laugh.

   Jennifer can’t believe she feels this comfortable in the arms of a man she hardly knows. She wonders what she’s gotten herself into with this. First she hired him off craigslist; she had coffee with him, got his phone number, called him several times during the week, gave him her address, welcomed him onto her home, and told him about her sister. Then there was this whole weekend with him. The dinner, her crying, him comforting her, her falling asleep with him, kissing him and of course there was all of the other interactions.

She didn’t know how she felt about him, but she knew she was in too deep because she had never opened up to someone this quick without getting to know them. And of course nothing was helped by the fact that they were pretending to be together and were being asked about their sex life.  Yeah that definitely didn’t help.

   The song ends and she starts to step away but Derek’s hands don’t leave her waist, instead he pulls her back to him.  And it’s not the kind of pull where she feels like she’s being controlled; it’s gentle and soft, soft enough that she could easily step away. When he speaks his voice is soft and low like it had been that morning.

   “Just one more dance?”

   She gives a hum of agreement and returns her arms to their spot around his neck, and lays her head back on his shoulder.

   “You like dancing?”

   “Yeah, I always have”

   “Why? Did you take dance lessons or something?”

   “No, I know it’s stupid but I remember when I was little, my sisters and I would always hold hands and spin around in circles, and I don’t know, I guess I like dancing because it reminds me of that”

   “That’s not stupid, it’s nice. Tell me more about your family. Didn’t you say that they were hard on you?”

   He tilts his head down to stare at her and she raises her chin to look up at him.

   “My older sister is Laura and my younger is Cora. Laura is two years older than me and Cora is four years younger than me. Growing up we were always really close, the whole family was until I was about 16. Then Laura graduated and everyone started expecting a lot from me. I had to take care of all the things Laura used to do, it was my responsibility to get Cora to and from school, I had to take her to all of her track meets, I basically became her parent. Then my parents wanted me to get a job on top of taking care of Cora, keeping up in school and juggling basketball. It was a lot for me to shoulder and it only took about 6 mounts for me to go downhill. I started missing stuff, forgetting about Cora, my grades were dropping and I started getting really anxious all the time. I had a breakdown on winter vacation and they sent me to a boarding school until I graduated. I haven’t talked to any of them very much since then.”

   Jennifer’s eyes are soft and she moves a hand to cup his cheek.  

   “I’m sorry Derek, that…that sucks”

   Derek’s eyes narrow, he smirks, and shakes his head lightly.

   “You know, with vocabulary like that I’m starting to doubt you actually are an English teacher.

   Jennifer laughs, and smacks Derek’s chest without any real force

   “You jerk; do I have to prove it to you? Because I have some pretty interesting stories about my students, that I could tell you, and the only way you would know that they’re true is because they’re too crazy for me to make up on my own.”

   “Hmm, well I just talked about myself, so now it’s your turn. Tell me about your job.”

   Jennifer and Derek head over to one of the buffet tables, filling their plates with food and getting some drinks before finding a place to sit where they talk, flirt, and exchange stories, until they are called away for pictures and gift opening.

 

   Jennifer doesn’t know what time it is or where Derek is, but she does know that she can’t wait to finally get up to her room so she can shower and change out of this tight dress.  

   They’ve been done with pictures and gifts for hours but she can’t seem to get away from her prying family who has been delaying her, and won’t stop asking her questions about Derek. They’ve been bombarding her with questions about him since Maggie made all the couples kiss for one of the pictures, and they finally realized she had a date with her. Now she was tired, her feet hurt, and she just wanted to get away from them.

   She’s about to lie and tell them she has a _horrible_ migraine when she feels two strong arms wrap around her waist. It startles her for a second before she realizes that it’s Derek and relaxes. She hears him laughing quietly in her ear, before he addresses her nosey cousins.

   “Sorry to interrupt you guys, but I need to steal Jennifer away for the rest of the night.”

   One of his arms slides away and the other reaches down to lace his fingers with hers, with a wink at her cousins he adds

   “We have some important things to get to”

   Jennifer opens her mouth to protest, because really, she doesn’t need her family getting involved with her sex life, but Derek silences her with a kiss before she can even start talking.

   “C’mon, let’s go back to our room.”

   He gently tugs on her hand until she starts moving and he leads her back toward the resort.

   “Kissing me and holding my hand? You got a crush or something, Hale?”

    Derek turns to her and arches an eyebrow. Before she knows what is happening, she finds herself       lightly pressed against the wall with one of Derek’s hands cradling her face and the other on the small of her back. When he speaks his voice is quite and low, his warm breath puffing over her face.

   “Maybe, it’s a little more than a crush. Maybe, I was going to tell Boyd to forget his stupid bet I wasn’t going on a date with a stranger. Then maybe I changed my mind when I met you. Maybe I want to go on more dates. Ones where you don’t hire me, what do you think of that?”

   Jennifer swallowed and wondered just what she was getting herself into before answering him.

   “Maybe I’d be okay with that. More than okay, actually, I’d love to”

   Now that they were so close to each other Jennifer could hear the content rumble that vibrated thought his chest, before he closed the distance between them, pressing their lips together. She moved her hands to wind them around his neck pulling him as close as she could.  Derek’s hand was starting to slide down her side to the hem of her dress when a voice rang through the hallway.

   “I know you said you had important things to do, but I expected you to at least make it to your room before you started.”

   They jump apart and whip around to see one of the cousins from before with a smug smirk on her face and an eyebrow raised.

   Jennifer begins to stammer out a response when Derek smirks right back at her cousin

   “Well, trust me we are going to our room, but maybe we just decided to warm up out here. Is that a problem for you?”

   Clearly not expecting that for an answer the girl mutters out a quick no and hurries away, probably to go tell all her sisters what she’d seen.

   Derek turns back to Jennifer with a vaguely annoyed look on his face.

   Worried her cousin had ruined the mood she reaches out and closes her hand around his.

   “What’s wrong?”

   “Oh nothing, I just don’t like being interrupted”

   Jennifer gives him a sly look before taking his other hand and starting to walk backwards toward the stairs.

   “Then maybe, we should go somewhere we won’t be interrupted. Somewhere where we can spend the rest of the night together, just the two of us”

   Derek hums quietly, pretends he’s thinking about it, and then smirks.

   “Well I do like the sound of that”

   Jennifer gives him a flirty wink, as she leans down and unfastens her heels and slides them off.

   “I think you’ll like the sound of me better”

   She doesn’t miss the look of surprise on his face as she drops one of his hands to grab her shoes and giggles as they run up to their room like children.

 

    It turns out they are both very late to breakfast the next morning. 

 


End file.
